Philosophical Thoughts #2: A Matter of Perspective

About seven or eight years ago, I was visiting my grandma at her nursing home. It was an unusual event, since I don't visit my grandma that often and when I do, it's usually with my brother in tow.

This time however, it was just my mother and myself. (My mother usually go visit/takes care my grandma. I came since I just had my mother pick me up from my music theory lessons). Anyways, we were waiting for my grandma to finish doing her business in the bathroom. My mother was explaining to me how my grandma was feeling quite depressed recently. Therefore, she (my mother) told/reminded her about an old Buddhist belief.

I believe it was Buddhist, but don't quote me if I'm wrong! For all I can remember, it could have been something that my mother heard from somewhere else or made up. The belief was that we humans have three lives. One life is destined to be full of happiness, one life is destined to be full of sadness and the last life is where you get to control your own destiny.

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I haven't really thought about that belief till about now. Over the course of the past eight weeks, it just felt like I've been hit with misfortune after misfortune. Sick twice within five weeks (three weeks filled with sleepless nights due to coughing and a week of common cold), rejected by the CBE and FFCA, no positions suitable for me in the Catholic board, unable to teach in England due to current circumstances in my life not relating to what's listed so far, no responses from the private boards and other boards outside of Calgary and a whole bunch of other, what I classify, as misfortunes.

Essentially, over the past couple of weeks, these things made me think back to the belief that my mother told me about. I was thinking to myself that I must be living in my life of misfortune. But of course, my scientific mind was in conflict with that hypothesis. I only been hit by a string of unfortunate events recently, it's not like my whole life has been plagued by it... Perhaps I'm living my last life?

Or is it just simply how I'm perceiving things at the moment?

That really made me think about the "glass half full/half empty conundrum". (I'm a where-is-the-other-half kind of guy for the past couple of years). And so, I started looking back over the past eight week and tried thinking about what I have learnt through my misfortune. What's done is done. There isn't much point to dwell on these negative things if I don't try to make any changes to make my life more meaningful.

And thus, it's a matter of perspective. Throughout my reflection, I learnt that hard work doesn't always pay off, but it's never time wasted. There is always something I have gained, whether it's as simple as new experiences or new friendships, it's never time wasted.

So instead of moping and "laying on the ground" figuratively speaking, it's time to get back up on my feet and move on. Like the saying goes, what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger!

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And there goes another philosophical thought blog. I never seem to be able to put my thoughts down properly =/.

Ah well, practice makes perfect!